Tiiraen held his breath, his arms folded around his wife. It was good to see her again, it had been too long. She smiled up at him, her blood bond with him allowing her joy to mix freely with his own. He could not help but grin back at her as she led him into the small apartment that she had been in staying the past few months. For but a moment, Tii was teased with the thought of being alone with her, after all the time that they had spent apart, but lounging just within the door were the two young creatures which had become Aireona’s temporary charges, the little Ojee and the creature’s bond, a silvery dragon. He let himself out of her embrace, a slight frown forming on his face in disappointment. His wife shot him a knowing glance, her eyes sparkling with unvoiced laughter.

::Hi, Mr. Airy’s mate,:: said the little dragon, her bright purple eyes, curious and beautiful. Tii forced a smile onto his face, not really wanting to be rude. ::I hope that you don’t mind, Peak and my being here.:: Tiiraen shook his head, assuring the young creature, though he was a bit disturbed by the fact that the dragon seemed to know what he was thinking.

He followed after his wife, who had disappeared into her darkened bedroom with his single piece of luggage. The room was clean and tidy, a faint scent of flowers swimming through the air. There were words painted across the ceiling, glowing lightly in the dim light. Tii smiled to himself, amused by Aireona’s systematic manner of settling in.

“It is a habit grown from a life of wandering,” she told him, taking his waist into her embrace. Tii returned the gesture, though he was wary of getting too close to her for the time being, knowing that anything that they wanted to do would have to wait. Aireona tighten her grip on him, ignoring his hesitant emotions, and pulling herself upwards she planted a firm kiss on his still lips. They stood still for sometime, locked in the strong feelings which bond them so tightly. Then they separated again, their desire for each other fierce but controllable.

“Looks as though your little “idea” has gone over rather well,” Tii said, trailing his fingers along the edge of the bed as he wandered to the other side of the room. He could feel his wife’s excitement at the thought, and for a brief moment he too reveled in her success, but reminding himself why he had come, Tiiraen suppressed the feeling.

“Peak has changed so much,” Airy beamed at him, “Bonding has done her a great good.”

“So,” Tii inquired, “I suppose we will all be going home soon.” Aireona offered him a strange smile.

“Well,” she began, “I thought that maybe we could stay for a while... I mean, you could use a bond...” Tiiraen felt his heart skip a beat. Was that surprise or anticipation?

“A bond?” He gave his mate a cynical look, though he had already been considering the act since before he had come. “Wouldn’t that get in the way of our relationship?” He had voiced his greatest concern, the one reason why he thought that bonding a dragon might not be benefit him.

“Has my bond ever come between us?” Aireona sat down on the bed, the mischievous glint to her dark eyes telling Tii that she had already decided for him. Aireona’s bond, though she had known Airy long before Tii had come into her life, had only been happy for the two of them... “And besides, you deserve it.” Tii flinched, hating the note of pity in his mate’s voice. Aireona slid towards her husband, her eyes locked on his, sensing the pain that she had caused at her comment.

“What are you talking about?” He whispered. Airy took his hands into hers, her eyes intent upon the lines which weaved across his callused palms. She comforted him through their bond, not having meant to make him think back upon painful things.

“You are punishing yourself,” she muttered, her eyes stinging with unshed tears. “And it is not right... Please, Tii, you and I both know that you want a bond, you have ever since you met Riithin’Shia.” He looked down at her, taking in her distraught expression with a pang of sadness. She was right.

“I suppose that it wouldn’t hurt to try...”